Regressor Instruction Manual

Chapter 1428. Continental War (8)

“What do you want to do?!” Sung Ji-Hoon asked.

‘What do you mean? I need to make you useful.’

I really wanted to disable the filters on him and show him the harshness of reality, but the issue was that I had no idea how much mental damage he would sustain if I were to do that. If he were someone like Kim Hyun-Sung, I would disable the filter and press the mindless enhancement button, but this guy was still young, so I hesitated.

In the worst-case scenario, he could become completely irrecoverable, so I had no choice but to take my time. I had a feeling that a situation that would drive him insane could unfold. Of course, the best outcome would be to help him mature without removing his filter, but it wasn't exactly easy, was it?

‘Otherwise, the higher-ups wouldn’t have sent him here, damn it.’

I thought of many different ways, but all of them seemed difficult. Honestly, I was not even sure if removing his filter was the right choice. I knew for certain that, in the first life, he went completely crazy and died.

‘First Ki-Young must have attacked him mentally.’

Judging by the circumstances, I felt like First Ki-Young had revealed the truth to him, resulting in his collapse. However, it was an incident that would happen way later.

It was hard to imagine a fully grown Holy Sword Hero taking a key role in the Outer Gods War. To my eyes, he was just a talented kid, nothing more, nothing less.

While I was busy thinking, I saw him open his mouth again, urging me to speak.

“Even if you tell me to give the answer... I really don’t know,” I told him.

“No. I’m sure you know the answer. It’s okay if it’s wrong. Just say whatever comes to mind first. This is all the will of the gods,” he urged.

‘He’s just reckless.’

I had no choice but to muster the courage to speak.

“We should probably keep marching...” I suggested.

“No, that’s not what I’m asking,” he said.

“Then...”

“You said you trust me,” he said.

“I did,” I said.

“How many times do I have to tell you? I’m the hero. Imagine you can do anything. Maybe I can help you,” he said.

“...”

“...”

“I...” I trailed off.

“...”

“...”

“I want to stop the war. I want to end this war,” I told him.

It was probably the most boring and predictable answer possible, but it was the best answer that Jin Yoo of the Republic could give. Putting emotion into my gaze was a given. I had no choice but to put a bit more effort into the emotional acting, as I was standing before the Holy Sword Hero.

Of course, he would still fall for it, even if I hadn't given my all, but the important thing was to not deceive this guy.

What mattered was that he saw the people here and me as real humans. I showed fear of death, a yearning for survival, and furthermore, a sense of disgust toward this merciless act that brought nothing but destruction.

I could see him staring straight into my eyes. He looked as if he had lost his words. It even seemed like he felt a very slight sense of unease.

‘Is this his first time properly interacting with other people? But... is that even possible?’

It was impossible. Up until now, he had been moving at the behest of those above him. He had to have grown while being immersed in clearing the quests handed down to him from above, without any room to look back.

“I-I see... so then... how do we stop the war?” he asked.

“I don’t know that either. How can we make the hatred and anger toward each other stop...” I answered.

‘The lines are honestly kind of cheesy, but he likes stuff like this.’

“Honestly, it’s an impossible task...” I mumbled.

“...”

“...”

“No, everything is possible,” he added.

‘He’s really sentimental. Give him one line, and he gives back ten lines. He's a feast of famous lines.’

“...”

“...”

“Trust me. I’m a man who makes the impossible possible,” he added.

‘Damn it, he keeps going.’

Of course, I had no choice but to nod as if I had made up my mind. Nodding once more, I drew a map on the ground. It was a frontline completely different from the one I had just drawn.

“This is the Maginot line,” I said.

“What?”

“If the Republic’s front line is pushed back here, the Republic will have no choice but to propose a ceasefire,” I said.

“...”

"The Empire isn't the only one that has reached its limit. Over these four years of war, both sides have lost far too much. I guarantee you that even the upper echelons of the Republic are looking for justification for a ceasefire.

"The Empire is the same. If the front line is pushed back to this point, it will clearly serve as justification for a ceasefire,” I continued.

“I-I don’t really get it, but... can’t they just propose a ceasefire first? Do you really need justification?” he asked.

‘Man, this guy is an idiot? You’re winning the war, so why would you be the first to suggest a ceasefire? And if the war just ended like this, it would be like giving up territory and calling it quits. Do you think they would agree to a ceasefire treaty? The Maginot line is the bare minimum to satisfy both sides, damn it.’

“Ah! Is it because the Republic is winning the war?” he asked.

“That’s right, but this is a victory that feels like a lie,” I answered.

“...”

“Look around you, Hero,” I said.

“...”

“The troops have already reached their limits. Even within the Republic, it’s becoming difficult to keep focusing on the war. The Republic doesn’t even have the capacity to manage prisoners anymore. In truth, this war should’ve reached a stalemate long ago, and yet the reason it’s still going on is...” I paused.

“Uh, why is it still going on?” he asked.

“Because Commander Jin keeps winning. He continues to produce results even under terrible conditions, so the war has yet to come to a halt. No, maybe from the very beginning, they never intended to stop. They’re convinced that he can win this war. To be honest... I think so too, but...” I paused.

“Yeah?”

“There’s no way we can drive out the Union of Kingdoms and the Empire in a short time. It might take three years, five years, or even ten. During that time, countless people will die. The continent will grow sick, and little by little, it will collapse,” I continued.

“...”

“...”

“So what you’re saying is...” he trailed off.

"That's right,” I said.

“We have to stop Commander Jin?” he asked.

‘Has he even been listening? Damn it. First, we need to set the Maginot Line. Something both sides can agree on. Ah, damn it, I don’t even want to explain it.’

“Yes.”

“That won’t be easy. He’s strong. I’ve heard he’s incredibly smart, too. Honestly, even I can’t guarantee that I can beat him. And it’s not just Jin Cheong. He has a lot of capable subordinates around him.

"But... I think you’re right. Wars should disappear. Yeah. If we can stop it, it’s better to stop it. I’m sure the Holy Sword and the gods want that too. Yeah. Yeah. Humans shouldn’t be fighting each other,” he said.

“...”

“Alright, then... let’s do that. We’ll need to flesh out the details a bit more, but our party’s objective is basically decided. You could say we’ve taken our first step. L-Lady Alps, and hyung, you agree too, right?” he asked.

'That was it? Was that really all? Couldn’t he see the horrors of war at all? Was that reaction seriously the end of it? Damn it.'

His response was so dry that the one trying to put emotion into it ended up more flustered instead.

Alps and Lee Chang-Ryeol were staring at him with faces that seemed to be saying, "what on earth is this guy?"

They were so taken aback that all they could do was nod. Naturally, I resolved to cut off the light novel talk. It really seemed like our Holy Sword Hero was far more detached from reality than I had thought.

‘Damn it, this won’t do.’

First of all, this guy needed to mingle with people.

“Then—”

“Let’s help the people first,” I interrupted him.

“Ah, yeah... we should do that,” he said.

The sudden change in plans made the timing a little off, but for now, the right thing to do was to pretend to help people diligently.

Most of them still hadn’t regained their consciousness, and screams still echoed from all around. I made a flustered, hurried motion, approaching the injured and starting some basic first aid.

Of course, it wasn’t anything major. It was just pulling out lodged arrows or sprinkling the cheap potions that had been distributed as supplies.

Lady Alps and the nameless Chang-Ryeol mimicked me.

Considering they had joined later, their urgency looked convincingly realistic, which was satisfying in my eyes.

“Are you alright?”

I said the standard line.

“Please come this way, Mr. Ji-Hoon!”

I also called out to Sung Ji-Hoon just because.

“Huh...? Oh!”

The clueless guy didn’t know what to do at first, so he wandered around staring blankly, but he gradually became more active. As a strong individual, his role was clear—rescuing people trapped under heavy rocks, timber, or carts.

“One! Two!”

“...”

“Three! Lift it!”

“Uwaaaaah! Why is this so heavy...”

“Huh? Wait, why is it being lifted so easily?”

Sung Ji-Hoon easily lifted a cart that even five strong men struggled to lift.

Naturally, all eyes turned to him.

“W-wha... how is he so strong?”

‘That’s what he should be doing.’

“Hey! Kid! Help over here, too!”

“It seems they need help over there. Go quickly, Hero,” I instructed him.

“Huh? Uh? Well... I can’t go alone... let’s go together,” he suggested.

“Okay.”

‘Damn it. Do I really have to go with him? He might end up asking me to go to the bathroom with him.’

“What the? You can lift this in one go? What a powerhouse!”

“Thank you for saving me. Thank you... heuk... thank you so much.”

“Ah... sure.”

“Over here, too, please!”

“Okay.”

“Hurry, Hero.”

“Alright.”

“Hero... do you have any potions left?”

“Uh... yeah.”

He started using better potions than the cheap ones from the supplies. He opened the lids of the potion and sprinkled it on the wounded. The burned and injured people began healing.

Since he was useful everywhere, he quickly became popular. It was exhausting work, no doubt, but his expression didn’t look bad at all. He still moved like a machine, mechanically carrying out tasks, but he didn’t seem uncomfortable communicating with people.

He kept his distance from them, but those he helped gathered around him.

He even secretly handed out rations...

“Please take this. It’s embarrassing to even call it a reward, but... this is a token of our thanks.”

“Ah... thank you.”

Some of them even hugged him, thanking him.

“Thank you! Thank you so much. You’re our savior!”

I even spotted people inviting him to eat together. Honestly, it wasn’t really a situation for a proper meal, but since the cleanup was wrapping up, a gathering began to form.

The fact that the commanders had stepped away to discuss countermeasures worked in our favor. People discreetly pulled out supplies they wouldn’t be able to use anyway and settled down in small groups.

The battle had just ended, so grime and sweat were streaked across their faces, and their faces were so dirty it was hard to look at them properly, but... surprisingly, many of them were smiling.

Whatever the reason, the fact that they could rest and eat made them happy.

Of course, the zombies ruined by drugs and magic didn’t seem to have that kind of leeway, but they were irrelevant anyway, as they wouldn’t be of any help to the Holy Sword Hero. What I needed now were the ones who still had emotions left.

“What’s your name? I’m Oksana,” Oksana asked.

“Just call me Charlie. Come to think of it, we never even introduced ourselves. Damn it, we really needed some time off,” Charlie said.

“Hey, strong kid. I said it before, but let me thank you again. You saved us.”

“Call me Devel. I don’t have a family name,” Devel said.

Sung Ji-Hoon looked like he was standing there blankly, pretending not to care...

“...”

“...”

For some reason, however, he also looked happy.

‘They’re all people who are going to die anyway. Get close to them as much as possible.’

“...”

‘From what I can tell, fewer than ten percent of them will make it back alive.’